Streaming Spotlight by Cindy Summers
Snowflake Mountain – Netflix Series

In Snowflake Mountain, ten overly emotional, easily offended young adults are sent by their parents to what they believe is a resort vacation, only to discover they’ve actually been sent to a wilderness survival retreat to help them to live their own adult lives with all the responsibilities that entails. Their parents are tired of them not meeting their potential so they tricked their giant babies into going far far away and “grow the hell up” under the guidance of Survival Experts Matt Tate (army combat engineer for almost 10 years) and Joel Graves (former navy ordinance disposal, bomb squad), along with Cat Bigney (primative skills expert and survival educator).

The camp is completely off grid and the group, which includes 5 men and 5 women from across the globe, must learn to adapt and change their snowflake ways of being lazy and feeling entitled or suffer consequences, which is a very new concept to this eclectic group of young adults. The women include: Rae, 25 Kent, UK; Deandra, 24 New York; Derriea, 25 New York; Devon, 20 New York; Olivia, 25 Ohio (who quit day 1); and Francesca, 21 New York who came to camp half way through the series to replace Olivia’s spot. The men included: Liam, 21 Warwickshire, UK; Carl, 23 California; Sunny, 26 Pennsylvania; Randy, 23 Florida; Solomon, 26 Virginia.

The first day they were all in complete shock when they were driven into the mountains and dropped off with their luggage on a dirt road. Matt and Joel arrived in ATVs and told them to put their essential items in the dry bags supplied and hike back to camp. Matt and Joel gathered their luggage and met at camp for their first lesson in being flexible and adaptable. They then blew up all the luggage as a lesson in overcoming setbacks, making them stronger because sometimes in life there’s unexpected loss, and also sometimes material things weigh people down. Their motivation to stay was a $50,000 prize that would be awarded to one of them at the end, but the catch was that for every person that decided to quit, $5,000 would be taken from the prize money.

Matt and Joel started with simple things to help them begin to take care of themselves such as finding food caches in the woods or chopping down a tree for firewood. They were guided to be self-sufficient by doing things many of them had never done their entire lives such as cooking and cleaning, but also had to embrace using outhouses and showering outdoors. There were wilderness lessons like using a compass and skinning a deer, along with confidence building exercises like climbing a tall tree with climbing gear and breaking a board with their hands.

Those who needed extra help in being a part of the experience ended up at Last Chance Lake, where they had the choice of sleeping in the woods in a primitive shelter, or seeking shelter in a warm RV which would also mean they had quit and would be sent home. The end goal that all their experiences in discipline and teamwork was preparing them for was a 22 mile, 2 day hike to the top of a high mountain peak – the first day to basecamp being very physically challenging and the hike to the top the second day actually being perilous for skilled climbers.

To make it to the summit and for someone to win $50,000, they’ll have to challenge themselves, grow as individuals and work together as a team, concepts completely foreign to all of them.

Runtime: 8 – 40m Episodes

by Shirley Lorraine

Spellers Put to the T.E.S.T.

Even though school is out county-wide, the Spelling Bee must go on. That is, the 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee now being held on the Conejo Players stage in Thousand Oaks through July 17.

Competition is never easy, but for six middle school age students in Putnam County facing their fears as they work to overcome their insecurities, their myriad family issues and peer pressure to attempt to triumph in the Bee, it is especially challenging. The six quite disparate students each have their own singular ways of coping and recall, providing the audience with a great deal of laughter and empathy.

The students are played by Paige Pensivy as the confident, several-time winner; Jack Cleary the eccentric, homeschooled Leaf Coneybear; Hannah Saltman portrays a shy and insecure Olive Ostrovsky. Aaron Ellis is the Boy Scout Chip Tolentino (who ultimately suffers an embarrassing attack of inopportune puberty), Jacob Coners is William Barfee (pronounced Bar-Fay), and Jenna Lay is Logainne SchwarztandGrubenierre. Each one gave distinct and delightful characterizations, tackling their individual shining moments with verve and enthusiasm.

Three “adult” characters, the Bee organizer and town realtor (Rona Lisa Peretti), Vice-Principal Douglas Panch, (played wonderfully androgynously by Leilani Toone), and Mitch (Jeremy Matticks, a man serving community service hours, hold the students to the task at hand.

One tricky element of this play is the opportunity for the actors to improvise, adding often hilarious lines and actions to the play. Audience members are encouraged to “sign up” to be in the Bee as they enter the theater. Several are then chosen to participate in the Bee on stage, offering additional unknowns and opportunities. The audience immediately becomes a part of the Bee itself, rooting for everyone. Lots of fun.

To the cast and director’s credit, these elements were all handled seamlessly. Word definitions provided by Vice Principal Panch become a highlight of the action. Because of the unknown elements that can affect timing, the song order is not announced as it can change. Lots for the actors to keep track of! When a speller is eliminated, the character renders a “goodbye” song, is given a juice box and ushered off the stage.

Several of the “kids” and Mitch reappear as additional characters to add flavor and substance to the spellers’ backstories. The musical numbers are lively and feature some outstanding voices among the cast. The songs themselves are not particularly memorable but are appropriate to the action.

The ubiquitous school gymnasium setting, complete with climbing rope, posters and bleachers, is just right. The single microphone center stage is almost a character into itself. The production is tight and worthy of attendance. Go. It’s a fun show.

The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee plays Friday and Saturday evenings at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 2:00 p.m. only through July 17. A full program can be accessed on the CPT website, www.ConejoPlayers.org. Make reservations via the website or 805-495-3715.

by Shirley Lorraine

Music Man Brings in Summer in Ojai

The Ojai Art Center Theater is now running what may be the quintessential summer musical – the ever popular The Music Man by Meredith Wilson. Since first introduced in 1957, The Music Man, encapsulating the innocent charm of a bygone America, has been a favorite for both audiences and actors alike.

Perennially popular songs including seventy-Six Trombones, Till There was You and Trouble in River City, are once again brought to life by the inimitable Professor Harold Hill and others.

The story begins on the Fourth of July 1912, in the small town of River City, Iowa. Harold Hill, a charming conman, comes to town with a scheme to hornswoggle the citizens into believing he can teach the local youth how to play instruments in a marching band. The plan is to get the parents to buy the instruments, uniforms and instructions. Professor Hill plans to leave the area with the money before the wares are due to arrive. However, local librarian Marion Paroo catches Hill’s eye and, despite knowing his true motives, she persuades him to stay. Ultimately the positive influence of hope pervades, and the town rejoices. All is well in River City.

Directed by OACT’s Executive Director Tracy Williams Sutton, the large cast is filled with seasoned and up-and-coming talents alike. Larry Toffler leads the band as the charismatic Professor Hill. His performance is energetic, and he delivers the rapid-fire patter quite well. He is paired with Darrienne Lissette Caldwell as Marion the librarian. Caldwell has a beautiful operatic voice which does not need a microphone to be heard clearly. Vocal blending still needs some refinement, in my opinion, as Caldwell’s vocal strength frequently overwhelms any other musical action.

Watching the younger members of the cast shine was a treat. Abby Duclos as Amaryllis, Lily Giuliani as Zaneeta Shinn and Benny Schurmer as Tommy Djilas are particularly of note. Kai Maal-King is wonderful as the reticent Winthrop, delivering his song Gary, Indiana with precision.

The show features live musical accompaniment situated at the rear of the set. This enabled the front of the stage to be useful in many ways and the audience to enjoy the music as opposed to straining to hear the actors over the musicians. Good move, Director Sutton.

A featured highlight, for me, is always the quartet. As Professor Hill entices the school board members to experiment with their voices, the quartet quickly becomes a unit to favorable effect. There are some wonderful voices in there.
The Pick-a-Little Ladies also add concise delivery and comic flair. Several quite strong voices carry the songs, and with a few more performances under their belts, their blending should also settle in.

Also of note are veteran actor Bill Spellman as the befuddled Mayor George Shinn, his wife Eulalie Mackecknie Shinn played to the hilt by Marisa Miculian, and Andrew Eiden as Marcellus Washburn.

The Music Man will lift your spirits and provide a family-friendly entrée to the summer in Ojai.

Performances continue Fridays and Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and Sundays at 2 p.m. through July 26. Reservations www.ojaiact.org or (805) 647-8797.

Streaming Spotlight by Cindy Summers

Good Luck to You, Leo Grande – Hulu Originals

3 out of 4 palm trees

In Good Luck to You, Leo Grande, Nancy Stokes (Emma Thompson) was a retired religious education teacher that never experienced an orgasm, having spent her life faking them for her husband during the passionless, predictable sex they had for 31 years. Her husband, who died two years prior, had been the only man she had ever had sex with so she decided to hire a compassionate sex worker named Leo Grande (Daryl McCormack), who gently worked to disarm her insecurities about sex and her own physical appearance.

During their first meeting, Nancy was very apprehensive spending most of the time asking Leo questions about his life and work, though they did eventually end up in bed together. A week later Nancy booked Leo for a second time with a bucket list of sexual acts that she wanted to do having never experienced. Her past as a teacher was why she used a list, giving her discomfort a matter of structure and also having a sense of accomplishment being able to “check things off her list”.

Leo tried to help Nancy understand that her reservations weren’t about sex in general, rather that she needed to work on letting go from what holds her back and her own judgment. To relax her, Leo put on some music and despite her initial objection got Nancy to start dancing and feeling free in her body. Leo started with a simple massage that relaxed Nancy enough to ask Leo if he would take off his shirt so she could explore the contours of his chiseled physique, and ultimately were able to check one thing off Nancy’s list.

Leo explained he had many different types of clients: one that wanted to just watch TV, another wanted to have quick ten minute sex with no talking at all, one just wanted him to dress up as a cat and ignore him for an hour, another was a woman who couldn’t walk that wanted him to bath her and join her in the bath, and that he never judged any of them. Nancy said he was some kind of sex saint. Feeling more comfortable with him, Nancy shared she had always been ashamed about her body but Leo’s charm and charisma helped her to begin to see herself differently.

During their third meeting, they still spent most of the time talking due to Nancy discomfort, through which they discovered they were both using aliases, not their real names. Nancy asked Leo to reveal his real name and confessed that she actually did some internet sleuthing and knew who he was, which to Leo had crossed his boundaries. It was apparent that Nancy had become attached to Leo due to their intimate conversations, even offering to explain to his mother about his life as a sex worker, which made him angry and leave telling her to never contact him again.

A short time later Nancy requested a fourth meeting at the hotel coffee shop just to talk, which to her surprise Leo did oblige. She thanked Leo for what they shared, telling him she felt more alive and powerful in their month together than she could remember and told Leo she even recommended him discretely to a few friends. She apologize having realized that she became emotionally invested in the situation and also told Leo her real name. All seemed to clear the air between them and reignite their casual friendship gained through their unique situation.

Good Luck to You, Leo Grande is an insightful, compassionate look into sex positivity and to say there’s a big reveal at the end would be an understatement, though not in the way most would assume from the storyline, and actually is extremely heartwarming and triumphant.

Rated: R
Runtime: 1h 37m

by Shirley Lorraine

Lonesome Traveler Hits All the Right Notes

Lonesome Traveler: Generations, now playing at the Rubicon Theater, is an inspiring, uplifting, renewing and timeless concert experience. The magic doesn’t just happen when the curtain goes up. Musicians tune, strum, and greet the audience. The audience immediately becomes a part of the experience. The performers aren’t performing “at” us or “to” us – they are performing with us. We are involved. The concert embraces the audience with warmth, welcome and a sense of pride in the heritage brought forth by the chosen musical journey.

The featured trio, The Folk Legacy Trio, commandeers the continuum, leading both musicians and audience through familiar favorites of the folk song era. Listen to the lyrics carefully as many are just as relevant today as they were at the height of their popularity. As stated in the title song Lonesome Traveler originally sung by Pete Seeger in 1950, “this old world is in a sad condition.” A statement for the ages.

The Trio is comprised of George Grove, long-time member of the Kingston Trio; Rick Dougherty, also with the Kingston Trio and The Limeliters, and Jerry Siggins, best known as lead singer of The Diamonds. Sylvie Davison, Trevor Wheetman, Alexcia Thompson and Andrew Huber add their considerable musical talents to the mix. Both the musicianship and vocals are spectacular throughout. The audience is even encouraged to sing along, which many did.

The harmonies are angelic and, as one song intones, “sweeter than wine.” At times I closed my eyes just to concentrate on the delicious purity of the sound. A particularly moving rendition of the Sounds of Silence was amplified by the telling of what stirred Art Garfunkel to write it. Simply stunning.

Most of these songs were ones with which I grew up. They haven’t lost their charm. Instead, if anything, through this staging, the songs are more meaningful than ever. I was thoroughly transported. In fact, just before intermission, I was thinking “I could listen to this over and over.” Lo and behold, at intermission, there at the newly spruced up snack bar (which is beautiful) there were CD’s available including one of the original Lonesome Traveler production, now playing in the background as I write.

The audience is also treated to an original song by Sylvie Davidson which blends in beautifully to the rest of the tapestry.

The performance is augmented in style with projected historical references and backgrounds that embellish the emotional impact of the songs. Lighting and Projections Designer credits are given to Brian Gale.

The World Premiere Lonesome Traveler musical events, conceived by George Groves and Rubicon Co-Founder and Artistic Director James O’Neil are taking their place in the Rubicon’s history as a vital and integral unifying element of theater. I, personally, am eager for the next installment.

Lonesome Traveler: Generations continues through June 26. Wednesday and Thursday performances begin at 7 p.m., Fridays at 8 p.m., Saturday shows are at 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. Sunday matinees are 2 p.m.www.RubiconTheatre.org, (805) 667-2900.

Streaming Spotlight by Cindy Summers
Hustle – Netflix

After a car accident in college destroyed his future as a pro basketball player, Stanley Sugarman (Adam Sandler) found a life in the NBA as a scout for the Philadelphia 76ers. Though he loved the game, he found himself weary of years on the road looking for the next undiscovered superstar and yearned for a coaching position on the team. Team owner Rex Merrick (Robert Duvall) believed in Stanley and offered him an assistant coaching job, but passed away shortly thereafter leaving his son Vince (Ben Foster) in charge, who immediately sent Stanley back out on the road.

Stanley went to Spain to check out one of the last prospects on his list. While there he came across a pickup game where he found an incredible streetball player named Bo Cruz (NBA player Juancho Hernangomez), a mild mannered construction worker that played basketball in his work boots. Stanley was unable to catch Bo before he left, so caught the bus he was on and followed him home. Bo felt threatened when he found Stanley at his door, but Stanley used Facetime to reach out to Dirk Nowitski (Dallas Mavericks special advisor) who verified that he was legitimate.

Stanley arranged for Bo to play in a scrimmage with the Spanish National Basketball Team and though his performance was impressive, Vince remained unconvinced. Stanley decided to take matters into his own hands and personally pay to bring Bo to the U.S. and told him that he would be signed by the 76ers or enter the NBA draft. At the airport it was discovered that Bo had an aggravated assault conviction in Spain, and though he was released was warned that he could be deported if he were to be arrested in America.

Stanley took Bo to play at a showcase organized by his former college teammate Leon Rich (Kenny Smith, sports commentator and former pro NBA player) but unfortunately Bo was not up to the challenge as another player Kermit Wilt-Washington (Anthony DeVante Edwards, pro basketball player for the Minnesota Timberwolves) trash talked him and threw him off his game. Vince didn’t like what he saw of Bo on the court, so refused to support Stanley’s recommendation to bring him on the team and even shared information about Bo’s assault charge with the media.

With the support of his wife Teresa (Queen Latifah), Stanley quit the 76ers and put all his effort behind getting Bo ready for the NBA Draft Combine six weeks away. Teresa helped by preparing meals for Bo and their daughter Alex (Jordon Hull) assisted by video taping the workouts, which with Stanley’s coaching helped Bo to improved tremendously. Unfortunately Leon was unable to get him into the Draft Combine after Vince shared Bo’s assault charge with the media, but Alex had an idea to help get Bo recognized with social media.

Stanley and Teresa reached out to their friend and former pro basketball player Julius Erving (Dr. J) to create a video of the “Boa Challenge”, where anyone, including 76ers player Tobias Harris, tried to score on Bo for cash money. The video ended up going viral and Bo was eventually accepted into the Combine, where Stanley had arranged a surprise visit with his daughter Lucia and mother Paola to support him, but having only trained six weeks was Bo ready for the NBA?

Hustle captures the passion and pure joy of pursuing and doing what you love, while sharing a glimpse into sports team politics and what it take to make it in the NBA. It also features dozens of actual current NBA players, past NBA players, NBA coaches and other well-known sports pros.

Rated: R
Runtime: 1h 58m

by Shirley Lorraine

The Roommate Delivers at SPTC

Be careful what you ask for. You will probably get much more than you bargained for. This is the basis of what happens in The Roommate, a multi-layered play of possibilities written by Jen Silverman now playing at the Santa Paula Theater Center through June 26.

Cynthia Killion fills the role of Sharon, a middle-aged divorcee whose hum-drum existence in Iowa City is in dire need of refurbishment. Her advertisement for a roommate is answered by Robyn, played by Kathleen Bosworth. The two couldn’t be more different. Their lifestyles are polar opposites. And the excitement begins as they learn about each other and settle into new routines.

Sharon spends her days in an empty-nest fog, not really recognizing some realities about her life. Robyn has apparently come to Iowa to shed one lifestyle and try another, but Sharon’s relentless inquiries force her to grapple with her own realities Sharon, a “retired” housewife and mother takes each day as routine, brews the coffee, goes to her reading group. Robyn is a former scam artist, mother, vegan and pot-smoking lesbian. Despite their many differences, they find they actually have quite a bit in common at the core.

The play is hilariously blunt in its middle-class familiarity. Conversations begin the way many of our own do, then take a wild turn. Silverman’s dialogue is brilliant as the ladies’ lines mirror many of our own inner thoughts. We wonder about many things but often don’t verbalize them. Sharon and Robyn, however, do not hold back.

They are frank, revealing and surprising as both women come to realizations about themselves as their unlikely friendship develops. Both the characters are beautifully developed and masterfully delivered Killion and Bosworth. The result is a delightful, laugh-filled evening of satisfying theater.

The play is directed by Taylor Kasch, who no doubt had his hands full guiding and polishing these two accomplished actors. Set designer Mike Carnahan created a lovely tract home interior kitchen setting that is quite detailed, complete with luscious landscaping outside the double doors to the patio. I would live there!

Presented without intermission, even the scene changes and resulting actions glimpsed by diminished lighting add tremendously to the continuity. The actors tidy their table, pour their coffee, continue with the daily minutiae of life and move forward as we all do, often on autopilot. Life goes on, even as its trajectory changes, sometimes drastically.

To reveal more would be a great disservice. Audiences will need to discover for themselves how these two women adjust, cope and triumph. The journey is well worth the wait.

Covid precautions are still in place. Masks are optional and vaccination status is required. The night I attended there were plenty of seats to facilitate distancing, but this play deserves a full house so be prepared to comply for everyone’s comfort and safety.

Performances continue Friday and Saturday evenings at 8 p.m., and Sundays at 2:30 p.m. 805-525-4645, www.santapaulatheatercenter.org, [email protected].

Streaming Spotlight by Cindy Summers
The Lost City – Paramount +

In The Lost City, popular romance author Loretta Sage (Sandra Bullock) had just finished novel number twenty, and began what she wanted to be her last book tour with her handsome book cover model named Alan (Channing Tatum). Fiction quickly became real life for both of them when Loretta got kidnapped by billionaire Abigail Fairfax (Daniel Radcliff) believing she could actually help him to find the lost treasure that was the focus of her recent exotic adventure novel.

In her latest novel “The Lost City of D” Loretta described an ancient lost city that was discovered by fictional heroine Dr. Angela Lovemore and her dashing love interest Dash McMahon, portrayed by cover model Alan Caprison. In the story the queen wore a “Crown of Fire” that was a priceless treasure thought to still be in a special tomb in the fabled lost city.

In the book Loretta used actual archaeology research she had done with her husband, who passed away five years earlier and was why she decided to become a reclusive writer. Eccentric billionaire Abigail Fairfax had recognized the validity of the symbols in her book, and was on a quest to find what he believed to be a crown of fire rubies.

Abigail had his henchmen snatch Loretta from her book tour and asked her if she would join him in locating the treasure. Loretta declined, so Abigail drugged her on took her on his private jet to the island where he believed the tomb with the treasure he sought was located. He had bought the southern half of a remote Atlantic island where clues surfaced regarding the lost city when the volcano on the island became active.

Meanwhile, Alan who was enamored with Loretta, saw her get snatched and told her publisher Beth (Da’Vine Joy Randolph) and with no assistance from the authorities, they set out to rescue Loretta. Alan recruited Jack Trainer (Brad Pitt) former Navy SEAL turned CIA operative to aid in the rescue, who was able to locate Loretta from her smart watch and told Alan he would met him on the island.

When Loretta awoke Abigail handed her some ancient parchment to translate that he believed would help him find the treasure. Unfortunately much of the parchment was missing, so Loretta could only make out a few words, which frustrated Abigail who knew she had studied ancient languages and was the reason he kidnapped her.

Jack located the compound where Loretta was being held, and though he told Alan to stay behind, Alan wanted to be there when Loretta was rescued so followed behind against Jack’s wishes. Jack gave in and told Alan to just stay alive while he used his ninja like skills to stealthily take out all the guards and find Loretta.

Throughout it all, Loretta wore a bright pink sequinned jumpsuit and was actually rescued being rolled out in a wheelbarrow strapped to a chair as cars exploded while Jack casually tossed back is long hair. More adventures awaited Loretta and Alan in the jungle as Abigail pursued them, not knowing that the treasure he sought may not be what he thought.

The chemistry between Bullock and Tatum is very entertaining, and Pitt is the perfect zen ninja.

Rating: PG-13
Runtime: 1h 52m

Streaming Spotlight by Cindy Summers
The Wilds: Seasons 2 – Amazon Originals

Season 2 of The Wilds opens with what Leah learned at the end of Season 1 where there was a second group stranded and trying to survive on another island just as they were, except it was a group of boys. Season 1 revealed the key individuals behind the experiment, as well as that it was a staged plane crash and that none of their parents were aware and thinking they had all gone off to some high end resort for spa days and paddleboard adventures.

Season 2 focuses on the boys’ experiences while also taking viewers into deeper stories of the girls and how they were ultimately rescued. The dynamics as far as the characters in the groups were very similar and at the opening of Season 2, both groups had been rescued and were in a facility where they were being intereviewed about the situations that happened during their island survival experiement and told their parents would be arriving to get them.

The idea was that no one was to learn it was an intentional experient and that each group had two covert insiders to somewhat guide the groups and report information back to the research headquarters when necessary. The islands were rigged with hidden cameras and mics everywhere, known only to the insiders, who always seemed to have helpful ideas or find random stuff to aid in their survival. Leah was the only one who suspected Nora of being involved in something ultimately controlling their situation. The problem there was that every time Leah found some proof, it disappeared before she could share it with anyone else, which made her appear to others and herself to be becoming unhinged.

On the boys’ island, they also lost one member right from the start as well as having to defend themselves against a dangerous predator that the research team actually had no idea was on the island. The boys teamed up in a coordinated attack and were able to catch and kill the predator. Though seeming to be carrying on well, an incident unknown to the group once revealed altered their dynamics permanently, thus causing them to fail the experiement.

A brush with death rattled all the girls as each of them engaged in their individual struggles to find peace and the truth. Martha had a psychotic break and stop moving or eating for over a week, even causing bed sores on her legs. Rachel stuggled with losing her hand and her sister Nora in a shark attack, while Fatin made a unsettling discovery in Nora’s journal pointing to the fact that Leah may have been right all along and in the truth all alone.

The researchers brought both teams back to the facility at the same time. The girls surviving 50 days was considered a success, while the boys only lasting 34 days was considered a failure, and research coverts who presented themselves as law enforcement there on their behalf interviewed them one at a time to try and discover what happened to them all out there in the wild. Unfortunately and unknown to any of them, none of them would be seeing their parents anytime soon.

Seasons 2: 8 episodes – 60 min